Each year, Flathead Audubon completes and discloses to our membership our Chapter’s financial reports for the previous fiscal year (July 1-June 30). This is not only an IRS requirement for non-profit 501 (c) 3 organizations, but also a good thing to do. We ask our membership to give a significant amount of money to FAS…
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by Rob Rich Swan Valley Connections held the Upper Swan Valley Christmas Bird Count on Saturday, December 21. Early morning fog burned off for a clear day of birding, with temperatures in the mid-30s and patchy snow on the ground that had not melted in the mild week leading up to the count. Sixteen birders…
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by Pete Fisher The 21st Kalispell Christmas Bird Count was held on Sunday, December 29, 2019. Milder than usual weather (28-32 degrees F) and minimal snow cover (1 inch) made for an interesting count. The “Flathead Gull Sanctuary” (The Dump) was fruitful this year, providing five gull species. These included the count’s first ever Lesser…
Read Moreby Don Jones We had to move Troy’s count from Saturday to Sunday (21st) due to the onslaught of rain. Although we lost some counters, we gained a couple more and the weather was much improved which made for better birding. I believe we had 12 people in the field and 5 feeder watchers. Temps…
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Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) rules could change! WHAT? The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service is proposing new MBTA rule that will result in greater losses of migratory birds! Eliminates penalties for industry/entities that “unintentially” kill birds/nests Removes incentives to prevent harming or killing migratory birds(e.g. Deepwater Horizon killed 1 million birds and BP had…
Read Moreby Lisa Bate Glacier National Park (GNP) held its annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC) on Sunday, December 15, 2019. Twenty-nine participants contributed to this event by covering 10 different routes in Glacier, and 1 bird feeder in West Glacier. Participants spent the day counting all bird species and individuals detected. The weather was unusually mild…
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Recently the Flathead Land Trust awarded the 2019 Conservation Leadership award to 2 people for their contributions to land and water conservation. Our own Gael Bissell was one of the recipients along with Constanza von der Pahlen, Program Director of the Critical Lands Program for the Flathead Lakers, and coordinator of two major collaborative conservation partnerships…
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by Kathy Ross In daylight, by reflecting foliage or sky, windows look like inviting places to fly into. Birds also sometimes see their reflection in a window and attack it. This happens most frequently in the spring when territoriality is high. At night, lights divert nocturnal migrants from their original path, especially in low-ceiling or…
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By Kathy Ross. Plastic that escapes into the environment is simply not good for birds or wildlife (as well as humans). We now know that plastic breaks down to tiny micro-plastics that are transported by water to lakes, rivers, and oceans where they are consumed by animals and enter the food web. Micro-plastics can interfere…
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Mark your calendars because February 14th is coming right up, and we all know what that means. It’s time for the Great Backyard Bird Count and, okay, Valentine’s Day. The GBBC is conducted over a four-day period in mid-February (14th – 17th) to get a snap-shot of winter bird populations prior to spring migration. It…
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